Volleyball Seniors Honored at Year-End Banquet

The 2009 Yale Volleyball team (photo courtesy of Alexis Crusey '10)

Feb 09, 2010

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Head Coach Erin
Appleman and the Yale volleyball team hosted their year-end banquet
on Saturday evening, celebrating a program-best 21-4 record from
the 2009 season as well as the careers of an accomplished
five-member senior class. The banquet, held in the varsity room of
the Ray Tompkins House, also recognized senior Cat Dailey as the
Bulldogs’ Most Valuable Player and freshman Kerry
Clavadetscher as Most Improved Player, while senior Alexis Crusey
claimed the Coaches’ Award.

The Class of 2010, which is comprised of Crusey, Dailey, Laurel
Johnson, Lydia Mailander and team captain Julia Mailander, posted
the best four-year record in the history of Yale Volleyball at
74-27 and the best four-year Ivy League record at 45-11. The
quintet was also a part of the 2008 squad that won the Ivy League
Championship and defeated Ohio in an NCAA Championship First Round
match. Each senior was given the opportunity to address their
teammates and coaches.

“I was personally touched by the way that this class saw Yale
volleyball as a vital part of their college careers,” said
Appleman. “On and off the court, this group of seniors never
settled for less than their absolute best.”

Dailey’s MVP award, which was voted upon by her teammates,
marks her second in two seasons at Yale. The unanimous 2008 Ivy
League Player of the Year, Dailey was one of three unanimous
selections to the All-Ivy First Team in 2009 as well as an AVCA
All-Northeast Region Honorable Mention. She was the only player in
the Ancient Eight to rank in the top 10 in kills, hitting
percentage and digs, swinging at a .266 clip with 3.55 digs and a
league-best 4.04 kills per set. The Newport Beach, Calif. native
also led the Ivy League in aces with 0.37 per frame. A history
major, Dailey earned Academic All-Ivy and ESPN the Magazine
Academic All-District First Team honors in addition to her athletic
achievements. She is the fifth two-time recipient of the MVP award,
which she shared in 2008 with former captain Ally Mendenhall
’09.

For the third time in four seasons, a freshman earns the Most
Improved Player award, with Clavadetscher, an All-Ivy Honorable
Mention, claiming the 2009 distinction. The award, established in
1994, is presented annually to the player who has shown the most
improvement over the course of the season or from one season to the
next. Clavadetscher, the Bulldogs’ first freshman All-Ivy
honoree since Kelly Ozurovich in 2007, was the second-most prolific
setter in the Ancient Eight with 11.38 assists per frame. She also
averaged 0.51 kills and 1.81 digs per set and was a force at the
net as well with 0.55 blocks per set.

The Coaches’ Award, presented to the player who best
demonstrates the intangibles both on and off of the court that help
the team succeed, goes to Crusey on the heels of one of the most
accomplished careers in the history of Yale volleyball. Her 2009
First Team All-Ivy selection made her the first Bulldog, and just
the fifth player ever in 31 years of Ivy League volleyball, to earn
four career First Team distinctions. The senior, who was also the
2006 Ivy League Rookie of the Year, closed out her career with
1,286 kills, the third-most in Yale history and the most ever by a
Bulldog in the rally scoring era (2001-present). She also ranks
seventh all-time in digs with 1,219.

Kelly Ozurovich will captain a 2010 squad that returns six
letterwinners from last season, including fellow All-Ivy honorees
Clavadetscher and Bridget Hearst. Yale will also welcome four
highly-touted recruits into the mix, including the program’s
first-ever Under Armor High School All-America recruit.